Blake Tohana, a former executive with defunct Magna Entertainment Corp., has been appointed to the Woodbine Entertainment Group board of directors while David S. Willmot, Mark Frostad, and William Graham will leave the board.

Stormy Lord proved too classy for his rivals as he successfully defended his title in the $250,000 PTHA President's Cup, a race that was marred by a three-horse spill on the turf at Philadelphia's Parx Racing Sept. 15.

Woodbine Entertainment Group, which operates Woodbine Racetrack, announced that David S. Willmot plans to leave the post of CEO, effective with the board of directors next meeting June 4, 2010. Willmot announced his intentions during the WEG directors meeting Dec. 4.

Officials at Woodbine Entertainment Group announced March 28 that the Ontario-based racing and entertainment company will install a Polytrack surface on its one-mile main dirt track at Woodbine. Construction is to begin in early July.

Hastings Park is for sale. The Vancouver racetrack that was purchased by Woodbine Entertainment Group in 2002 apparently isn't performing as well as its parent company had hoped, even though attendance and wagering have increased since it changed hands.

Racing associations are scheduled to meet with the Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency in Ottawa, Ontario, Nov. 15, to discuss a CPMA directive that has led to the suspension of pick six, pick four, and superfecta wagering until further notice.

Expanded distribution of Woodbine Entertainment Group's Thoroughbred and harness races and larger fields generated by higher purses helped increase the company's total handle for the year by 11.1%. The all sources handle for Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing was a record $1.36 billion.

The 165-day Thoroughbred meet at Woodbine Racecourse that ended Sunday showed significant increases in purses and wagering. Boosted by revenues from slot machines, Woodbine purses rose 7% to total more than $80-million, for a daily average distribution of $485,000. With higher purses and larger field sizes, handle at Woodbine increased 14% to average $2,085,756 per day from all sources.

The Fasig-Tipton Sales Co. is returning to Canada. After a 12-year hiatus, the Lexington-based company has been asked to run the annual yearling sale at Woodbine Racetrack. Canadian Thoroughbred industry leaders hope the change will bring some stability and growth to the breeding and sales markets.